Andy Pettitte
Andrew Eugene Pettitte (born June 15, 1972 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is an American former starting pitcher who played for 18 seasons in Major League Baseball. In his major league career, he played for the Yankees from – . He then signed with the Houston Astros and played for them from through . In , Pettitte rejoined the Yankees. He won four championships as a Yankee and made the playoffs every year except for 2006. Through 2007, Pettitte is eighth among active major league players in win-loss percentage (.640); 12th in wins (201; all those ahead of him are older than he is); and 13th in strikeouts (1,844). He is fifth in strikeouts (1,416), sixth in games started (310), and tied for fourth in wins (170) among Yankee players. He is also one of only six active players with at least 200 wins, 1,900 strikeouts, and a winning percentage at or above .600. The others are Randy Johnson, Pedro Martínez, Mike Mussina, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine. Early life Pettitte is of Italian and Cajun French descent. He attended Deer Park High School in Deer Park, Texas. In 1990, he pitched the Deer to within one win of the state title. It was there he met his future wife Laura. Together, they have had four children: Joshua Blake (11/3/94), Jared (5/28/98), Lexy Grace (1/10/01) and Luke Jackson (6/19/05). Selected by the Yankees in the 22nd round of the 1990 draft, he opted instead to attend San Jacinto College North (Houston, Texas), where he won 8 of 10 decisions. On May 25, 1991, he signed with the Yankees as an amateur draft and follow selection. Minor league career In his minor league career he went 51-22, with a 2.49 ERA in 113 starts. He never had a losing season. In the rookie league, he had an 0.98 ERA. Major league career Pettitte has been a 20-game winner twice, posting 21-8 records in and . Pettitte has been a part of 6 American League pennant-winning teams and 4 World Series championship teams. He is second only to John Smoltz of the Atlanta Braves in playoff wins with 14 (Smoltz having won 15). He is the only MLB pitcher since to win at least 12 games in each of his first 9 seasons. For his career, Pettitte has a 201-113 win-loss record, with a 3.81 ERA and 1,844 strikeouts in 2,492.1 innings. He also has never had a losing season in the Major Leagues. New York Yankees Pettitte made his major league debut on April 29, , with the New York Yankees, with whom he spent 9 seasons in the starting rotation. In , he made the American League All-Star team and finished second to Pat Hentgen for the AL Cy Young Award. He led the league in wins (21), was 3rd in W-L pct. (.724), and was 8th in the AL in ERA (3.87). In , Pettitte led the league in starts (35), pickoffs (14), and double plays induced (36), and was 3rd in the league in innings (240.3; a career high), 4th in ERA (2.88), wins (18), and W-L pct. (.720), 6th in complete games (4), 8th in strikeouts (166), and 10th in walks/9 IP (2.43). In , he was 7th in the league in complete games (5; a career high), and 8th in wins (16). In , he was 3rd in the American League in wins (19), 6th in W-L pct. (.679), and 7th in complete games (3). In , he made the All-Star team for the second time and was named the MVP of the ALCS, after winning Games 1 and 5 against the Seattle Mariners. He was 3rd in the AL in walks/9 IP (1.84), and 8th in strikeouts (164) and strikeouts/9 IP (7.36). In , he was 9th in the AL in W-L pct. (.722) and complete games (3). In , Pettitte was 2nd in the league in wins (21), 5th in W-L pct. (.724), 6th in strikeouts (180; a career high) and strikeouts/9 IP (7.78; a career-best), 8th in games started (33), and 9th in walks/9 IP (2.16). Houston Astros and Andy Pettitte|thumb|left|250px]] After the season, Pettitte left the Yankees, signing a 3-year, $31.5 million contract with the Houston Astros. He switched his uniform number to #21, in honor of Roger Clemens, who previously wore that number in Boston and Toronto. His season, in which he held batters to a .226 batting average, was shortened by elbow surgery. Pettitte returned to form in to help the Astros make their first trip to the World Series. His 2.39 ERA in 2005 was a career-best, and 2nd-best in the National League behind teammate Roger Clemens. He was also 2nd in the league walks/9 IP (1.66) and LOB percentage (79.7%; a career best),http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=pit&lg=all&qual=y&type=1&season=2005 3rd in sacrifice hits (15), 5th in wins (17), and 8th in W-L pct. (.654). He held lefties, who over his career have outhit righties when batting against him, to a .200 batting average, had a career-best 4.17 BB/SO ratio.Andy Pettitte Stats and Graphs - New York Yankees | FanGraphs In , Pettitte went 14-13 with a 4.20 ERA as the Astros missed the playoffs. He led the NL in starts (35), tied for 7th in pickoffs (4), and was 8th in double plays induced (26), and 10th in strikeouts (178) and batters faced (929). He held batters to a .229 batting average when there were 2 out with runners in scoring position. Second stint with Yankees in 2007]] After the 2006 season, Pettitte left the Astros, and signed a 1-year, $16 million contract with the New York Yankees. There is also a player option clause in the contract which will allow Pettitte to return to New York in 2008 for $16 million. Pettitte switched his uniform number back to #46 after wearing #21 in Houston. On January 11, , Pettitte was re-introduced as a Yankee at a Yankee Stadium press conference. Pettitte pitched his first game for the Yankees since 2003 on April 5, 2007 against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on a freezing night at Yankee Stadium. Pettitte lost his first game of the season when he pitched against the Boston Red Sox on April 27, 2007. He pitched 4 2/3 innings, letting up 5 runs on 6 hits and 5 walks. Pettitte was followed back to the Yankees by former Houston Astros teammate Roger Clemens. Both players left the Yankees after the 2003 season to play for the Astros. In May 2007 Clemens signed with the Yankees as well and joined the Yankees rotation in June. Once again Clemens and Pettitte were pitching for the same team. Pettitte won his 200th career game on September 19, 2007. In 2007 he led the American League in starts (34), was 7th in batters faced (916), and was 9th in innings pitched (215.3), finishing the regular season with a 15-9 win-loss record. He also had the 5th-lowest HR/9 innings pitched ratio in the AL (0.67). On November 5, he declined his 2008 option, becoming a free agent.Andy Pettitte Declines his 2008 option Then on December 1, 2007, Pettitte was offered arbitration by the Yankees. However, on December 3, 2007 Pettitte announced that he will pitch for the Yankees in 2008.Andy Pettitte Will Pitch in 2008 On December 7, 2007, Pettitte accepted the Yankees offer of arbitration. He officially signed a one year, $16 million contract with the Yankees on December 12th. http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/team/transactions.jsp?c_id=nyy&year=2007&month=12 On February 3, 2011, Pettitte called team owner Hal Steinbrenner to inform him of his retirement. However, on March 16, 2012 it was announced that Pettitte would be un-retiring and rejoining the Yankees. On June 8, 2013, Pettitte recorded his 250th career victory with a victory over the Seattle Mariners. Pettitte went 7 1/3 innings in the game, giving up 1 run and 3 hits. Postseason career In each of Pettitte's 9 seasons with the New York Yankees, the team advanced to the post-season. Pettitte holds the all-time record for most starts and innings pitched in the post-season (35 and 218.2, through 2007). When Pettitte started Game 2 of the 2005 World Series, he was tied for second for most World Series starts. Along with Christy Mathewson and Waite Hoyt, Pettitte has started in 11 World Series games. Whitey Ford is in front with 22 starts. Pettitte has played in 7 different World Series (6 with the Yankees, and one with the Astros), and been on the winning end of 18 postseason series - both of which are tops among active players. Pettitte is 14-5 with a 3.96 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 35 postseason games (1995-2003, 2005, 2007). Pettitte has pitched 218.1 innings in the postseason. Awards *1996 - All-Star *1996 - Good Guy Award, from the New York Sports Photographers *1996 - Greater Houston Area Major League Player of the Year, from the Houston Chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America *2001 - All-Star *2001 - ALCS Most Valuable Player *2003 - Greater Houston Area Major League Player of the Year, from the Houston Chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America *2003 - Warren Spahn Award, awarded annually to the top left-handed pitcher in baseball, from the Oklahoma Sports Museum Use of performance-enhancing drugs On September 30, 2006 the Los Angeles Times reported that former relief pitcher Jason Grimsley, during a June 6, 2006 federal raid by federal agents investigating steroids in baseball, named Pettitte as a user of performance enhancing drugs. The Times reported that Pettitte was one of five names blacked out in an affidavit filed in federal court. Grimsley had told investigators that he got amphetamines, anabolic steroids, and human growth hormone (HGH) from someone (later named as Kirk Radomski) recommended to him by former Yankees trainer Brian McNamee, who is a personal strength coach for Clemens and Pettitte. However, on October 3, 2006, the Washington Post reported that San Francisco United States attorney Kevin Ryan said that the Los Angeles Times report contained "significant inaccuracies." On December 13, 2007 Pettitte was named as one of the HGH users in the Mitchell Report. Contrary to the initial LA Times report, neither the name of Clemens nor Pettitte appeared in the affidavit submitted by Grimsley.http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3163889. On December 13, 2007, Pettitte was named in the Mitchell Report. Pettitte was one of several members of the Yankees, who Mitchell, a Director of the rival Boston Red Sox, listed on his report. Mitchell and his staff received the information on Pettitte from McNamee who told them he injected Pettitte with HGH on 2-4 occasions in 2002 so that he would heal from an elbow injury quicker. http://files.mlb.com/mitchrpt.pdf At the time of the now-admitted injections, Major League Baseball (MLB) had no specific rules barring professional baseball players from using steroids and HGH; however these drugs were, always have been, and remain illegal for individuals to possess or use, regardless of what MLB has to say on the matter. On December 15, 2007, Pettitte verified McNamee's claim admitting to using the HGH on two occasions in 2002, as it was meant to help heal an injury, and not to enhance his performance. Pettitte said he felt an obligation to return to the team as quickly as possible. He denied any further usage of HGH during his career; he also denied use of steroids or any other performance-enhancing drug.Yankees’ Pettitte admits to using HGH - Baseball - MSNBC.com. On February 13, 2008, in an affidavit made public as part of a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Oversight and Governmental Reform, Pettitte admitted to additional injections of HGH twice in one day in 2004, using HGH obtained via prescription for his seriously-ill father. Also in this affidavit Pettitte unequivocally recalled being told by former Yankees teammate Roger Clemens in 1999 or 2000 that Clemens had recently received injections of HGH. Clemens claimed during the noted hearing that Pettitte "misremembered" Clemens' 1999/2000 HGH remark, alleging that what Pettitte really heard was Clemens' reporting of his wife's use of HGH at that time, though earlier during this same hearing Clemens denied knowing of any use of HGH by his wife. McNamee corroborated Pettitte's recollection of events. On February 18, 2008, Pettitte reported to Yankees spring training and apologized to fans for his past drug use. In the press conference, he said the performance enhancing-drug scandal has put a "strain" on his relationship with close friend and former teammate, Roger Clemens. Quotes See also * List of Major League Baseball wins champions * Top 100 strikeout pitchers of all time * List of Major League Baseball players named in the Mitchell Report References External links * | before = Mike Mussina | after = Roger Clemens }} | after = Adam Kennedy}} | after = Johan Santana}} Category:American League Championship Series MVPs Category:1972 births Category:Living people Category:Warren Spahn Award Category:American League All-Stars Category:1996 American League All-Stars Category:2001 American League All-Stars Category:American League wins champions Category:1996 New York Yankees World Series Championship Team Category:1998 New York Yankees World Series Championship Team Category:1999 New York Yankees World Series Championship Team Category:2000 New York Yankees World Series Championship Team Category:Houston Astros players Category:People from Baton Rouge, Louisiana Category:Major league pitchers Category:Major league players from Louisiana Category:Major league players from Texas Category:Italian-American sportspeople Category:Cajuns Category:New York Yankees players Category:Players Category:Major League Baseball players with retired numbers Category:Retired